African American Resource Center
New Orleans Public LibraryAfrican American Genealogical Research in New Orleans

Getting Started: Forms

The first step in tracing your family tree is to fill in a family tree chart (Attachment 1).
Fill in the chart starting with yourself (the present), and then your parents, grandparents,
great-grandparents, etc. (working back into the past). Record your ancestors’ given
names, surnames and the maiden names of female ancestors. Include dates and places of
birth, marriage, and death for each person listed. Complete as much of the chart as you
can. This chart is very important because it will serve as your road map and guide to
further research. Your next steps will be to locate records that fill in the missing
information on the chart or that will document each family member.

Another form to use is a family group sheet (Attachment 2). A family group sheet maps
out the relationship for one immediate family. This form will be helpful as you find
brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, and cousins of your parents and grandparents. Remember
you are conducting research on your family, which evolved from several families. To
complete the family group sheet, start with yourself as a child, then your parents, then
siblings. Do more family group sheets where your parents are listed as children in their
immediate families. If there was more than one parental marriage, fill out a separate
family group sheet for each marriage and the children born from each marriage. If
another ancestor was married more than once, complete a separate family group sheet for
each marriage or union.